


Anything You Say Will Be Held Against You

by IdlePace



Category: The Yogscast
Genre: Crimes & Criminals, Light Angst, M/M, Mentions of Violence, Prison, Sexual Content, Use Of Strong Of Language
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-09-03
Updated: 2014-09-03
Packaged: 2018-02-16 01:01:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,420
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2249991
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IdlePace/pseuds/IdlePace
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Having a partner in crime is often a strategical move. To have someone watch your back, help pull you from a mess and sometimes even someone to love. When the playing field changes, sometimes that very strength, can become a weakness.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Anything You Say Will Be Held Against You

Bricks, stacked with bricks, laced with bars and topped with more bricks, dull and suffocating, an opportune structure to hold the undesirables of society, to break and forget them. Posted unsympathetic guards at every turn, never truly looking a soul in the eye, afraid they might catch humanity by the passing masses. Time may stop when a foot is placed within the walls, but the outside world continues to march on, turning away and abandoning the bodies that once mingled in with society.

Xephos tried to keep his thoughts together as they searched his brief case, praying that hiding his secrets in plain sight would fare him better than any hidden trick. He flinched under his dress shirt as they left his papers out of order, clicking the case shut and passing it back to him. The practically comical visitor sticker attached all too well to the cotton fibers of his shirt, like it had been waiting all its printed life to meet him.

When he was waved into the room he didn’t bother looking at the other tables, he knew he would regret getting to know any facial features of those around him. He sat down at the designated spot, composing his chest with a single purely throat breath. Xephos strained not to anxiously shift in his seat, distracting himself with setting his brief case atop the thin table and crossing his arms.

His mind drifted back into his memories as the isolated situation brought back similar thoughts to the first moment the man had made him wait. Always arriving close enough to the set time but just off to get under Xephos’ skin, never getting enough of the bearded man’s displeased rants.

He didn’t look up when a body sat down across the table from him. His mind was almost unprepared to see the true sight before him. As he wished for the umpteenth time for the moment to be all a dream he clicked open his case, “Good morning Ridge.” The sentence taste foul in his mouth as it mixed with the establishment’s stale air.

Xephos’ stomach came close to turning upside down as his eyes met with the man. His face was purely exhausted, glossed with an emotion Xephos could not pin point. The usual body filled curly hair lay lifeless against the sides of his face, pasted messily on parts of his cheeks. His smile no longer seemed to glow with his endless vitality, only flickering with unsure cracks to expose his teeth.

“It’s good to see you Xeph.” The tones in Ridge’s voice fell with the weight he held back, the breaks in his breath were evidently from his mood.

Xephos tried to hold his stance, even with the dishevelled man looking to him for hope, “And it’s good to see you’re not dead.” The puff of a lifeless laugh almost broke Xephos’ expression. He looked at Ridge for a second time, taking in the sight of inmate number two-two thirty six, and even as he held his teeth tight together, he couldn’t hold back a correction with his beating heart.

Choosing to continue with what needed to be addressed Xephos pulled out a stapled bundle of papers, pushing his brief case to the side. “There are a few details we need to discuss about your upcoming trial…” Sliding the papers across the table, he couldn’t ignore the fact that the tips of Ridge’s fingers met with his. When he should have let go to allow the man examine the documents from himself, Xephos instead let his actions be impulsive, curling his pinky finger around Ridge’s. “God you fucking idiot, I miss you so badly.” His hushed words hissed out in the pressure cooker of the moment as he could feel his tight grip returned.

“I miss you too…” Xephos didn’t want to look up from their discreetly joined fingers, wishing he could do more. As he took a brief moment to scan the tactfully situation guards Xephos could feel another one of Ridge’s finger rub comfort into his skin, it was like fire seeping into his bones and yet a song for his soul.

As he could feel the inevitable parting, Xephos had to stop himself from reaching across and grabbing the fingers again, his state of psychical withdrawal flaring in the back of his head. He watched as Ridge pretended to be interested with the papers in his grip, but as he saw a displaced finger absentmindedly brush up and down the edge of the papers he knew Ridge’s thoughts were somewhere else.

Clearing his throat Xephos dove back into the previous conversation, “There have been quite a few media stories about the case; nothing too in detail to avoid slander and such but the event itself is being widely covered.” Slipping out another bundle of documents Xephos let the man continue with his fake reading, “Newspaper articles, magazine write ups, news broadcasts, every which way the press has been asking questions.”

With a lift of an eyebrow Ridge set the papers down, “You haven’t been letting them know too much have you?” Though his voice croaked Ridge maintained his professional air.

Xephos waved a hand around, “Of course not, I’ve barely told them anything besides what I had to disclose to the judge.” Mixing more documents together Xephos sighed loudly, “I don’t know why you chose me to represent you. You know I’m not even remotely qualified for this sort of work and…”

The look Ridge shot his way froze Xephos’ train of thought. With a tweak of his lips Ridge smiled, “I trust you, more than anyone else. I know I’m safe in your hands.”

Xephos struggled not to let the words affect him, but he couldn’t help it as he bit his lip. “God I miss you…” His breath staggered to flow in one stream. Faking to fiddle with the buttons at his collar Xephos kept his volume low, “The fucking house is so empty without you and the bed isn’t warm anymore,” Even as his voice shook Xephos managed to pop the top buttons, “I keep praying that I’ll wake up to that stupid grin of yours but you’re not fucking there..!”

Setting his shaking hands to rest on the table Xephos pushed himself to cough, allowing him to clear his throat again. He almost refused to look at Ridge’s face, fearing the expression he would reflect back to him, but the words enough succeeded in breaking his heart: “I know Xeph, I’m so sorry. I wish I was home too.”

Looking over the hastily typed documents, some spilled with coffee and others with red wine Xephos searched for a select few, “I hope prison life is treating you well because the court date got bumped another two weeks.” As he tried to keep to the business side he held back a small chuckle as Ridge groaned, “Be thankful I was able to convince the judge to keep you in minimum security prison while you await trial and not the max the prosecution was trying to stick you with.”

With a forced grin Xephos passed another pack of papers to Ridge, “I’m surprised no one had tried to stab you in the showers though…” As Ridge’s fingers gripped the paper Xephos yanked it back, sharply bringing their faces down, “Cause don’t be surprised if I stab you in the shower when you get home.” He bit out the words with a low growl, releasing in an instant to meet Ridge’s smug grin.

Another mumble and Xephos tried to ignore Ridge’s expression, “What I really want to know is,” Shooting his keen sights out of the corner of his eyes Xephos loosened his lips, “Why you didn’t tell me before all this happened?”

Ridge drolly shrugged, “Thought you didn’t need to worry.”

Grinding his teeth together Xephos tried to control his breathing, “Well it looks like that failed seeing as my worry hasn’t stopped since I heard the police arrested you at one in the morning.” Letting out a rickety sigh he watched with unfocused vision as a guard passed their table, “These are very serious charges Ridge, there was no way they would let you remain free until your trial. They dubbed you as a severe threat to be contained.”

The pair of soft shoed feet surrounding his polished boots were the least of his concern as he laid out document after document, each outlining important aspects of the case, “Being accused of first degree murder is nothing to turn your nose at. We need to get every fact straight and-” As a shoe made it up under his pants leg Xephos locked himself in place, struggling to ignore the feeling.

When the guard passed them again Xephos let his frustration fly in smooth tones, “Why didn’t you include me in your fucking genius plan? Always taking things into your own hands without consulting me…” Letting his fingers dance over key points underlined in the papers Xephos permitted his hushed voice to continue, “We could have both gotten off scot-free if you would have actually included me.” Xephos wanted to step on the feet that kept pushing against him, to wipe the cheesy smirk off of Ridge’s face, but he knew he craved everything Ridge was throwing his way and more.

“Yes, perhaps,” Ridge’s feet seemed to still as he spoke, “But what if we didn’t? I’d much rather it be me behind bars with you on the outside than the both of us trapped here. Though I would love the company…” The feet resumed their once lazy pace.

Even with his fear of being noticed by the guards Xephos let Ridge continue his movements, “With this serious of a crime they most likely wouldn’t have allowed us to be in the same prison together… and I know what you’re thinking Ridge,” With a roll of his eyes Xephos tried to distract himself with the print stained papers, “I’m not even going to look into arranging one of _those_ types of visits.”

Whining softly like a disappointed child Ridge wasn’t allowed a follow up as Xephos interrupted, “Besides, even if I did, seeing you in this florescent orange jumpsuit is such a turn off. I don’t think I could moderately get it up to fuck you.”

Ridge brushed his foot against the clothed shin with a supressed laugh, “They do dress me like an eighties hobo don’t they?”

Loosing themselves for a moment both could almost forget where they were and feel like the table they sat across from each other at was the brunch table at home; that the voices around them was the morning talk radio and their poorly thought out jokes were truly just between the two of them. When Ridge’s feet started up again Xephos could feel his day dreaming thoughts be rudely set back into the psychical and figurative prison.

“How’s my amazing defense lawyer doing with my case?” Ridge’s voice turned surprisingly bright for the circumstance they both found themselves in.

A misplaced grumble bubbled out from Xephos, “I wish you hadn’t made such a mess…” His eyes checked his metallic wristwatch, cursing at how few minutes they had left, “I have so many bases to cover to prove your innocence. There is so much _false_ evidence convicting you.” He tried not to snarl his words, fighting to keep his façade as a mere defense lawyer. “I’ll have to go without sleep to get everything ready for the case.”

Running a hand through his hair Xephos gripped tightly at his skull, “Not like I even want to sleep when I know you’re in here…” With the silent sadness pouring from his lips Xephos avoided eye contact, already regretting what he said.

The hands on the table in front of him twitched, undecided and fearful of their next move. They canceled their decision of reaching out mid movement, knocking the wood of the table with their knuckles instead, finding a pathetic release for the energy. “Hey, it’s going to be okay.”

Xephos buzzed his lips, feeling as if he was meant to be the one to have said the comforting words. Instead he only nodded, letting his eyes melt with Ridge’s.

“God I’m so lucky to have you.” Ridge whispered as quietly as he could, noticing as a guard made his round past them again.

“Too right.” Xephos smiled softly, letting his feet reciprocate the playful movements, running the tip of his shoe along the man’s ankle. He could feel the leg shiver against him as Ridge instinctively closed his eyes. Xephos could almost feel how the other tried to transport his mind to another time, back when their playful gestures under the table were common and they had time on their side to waste the days away, content with the simple company and soft emotionally charged touches.

Xephos couldn’t help himself after every time his toes reached the ankle to draw small circles on the top of the foot, letting it slowly rotate twice before sliding back up the leg again. He could feel Ridge push against him, wanting more than just the light dragging. Xephos wished he could join Ridge in his fluttering thoughts, to be with him, closer than they could be now, for even a moment, would be a gift for him.

“So,” Ridge’s eyes reluctantly peeled open, hazed over from his streaming wonders, “What’s working for me in my defense?” His words were lost with the show he tried to put on for those keeping watch over them.

Letting his eyes linger longer than they should on the freckled face Xephos smiled before trying to make it look like he was busy shuffling papers, “Well there’s a lot of forensic evidence working _against_ you.” He pushed back his hair with a tired hand, “I need to talk to the leading lab technician about that. What was his name again..? Lalna I think it was. He’s in charge of filing and looking over each piece of evidence for your case.”

With a haughty expression Ridge sat back in his seat, “Oh yes, I’ve heard about him,” Scratching at his chin without a second thought he plucked out a detail from the back of his mind, “Yes, haven’t we dealt with him before?”

Sucking at his lip Xephos sighed through his nose, “A little bit. Mostly through other people, but yes, we have been acquainted with him before.” Thinking back he could almost remember the laid back man and how he had unknowingly let slip key points that helped them in the past.

Ridge’s grin flickered to flash a wicked show of teeth, “Use the dark haired one as a bargaining chip.”

Xephos could hardly contain his stutter of a breath as he prayed no one had heard the brash response. Letting his hands grip the table harder than they should Xephos let his voice dip, “Ridge we can’t go around threatening people when we need their help.”

Skimming his hands across the papers Ridge let a light chuckle fly, “I wasn’t really suggestion threats… just gentle coercion.”

Letting his head fall back Xephos shivered as his bones cracked, he was overly stiff from spending long nights typing away for the trial. His eyes attracted back to Ridge, allowing him to get the full view of the overly confident expression. Xephos squeezed at his neck with a huff, “Fucking hell Ridge, you know I’ll do what needs to be done to get you out of here.” Smiling to himself Xephos shook his head, “I’ll even blow the guy if that’s what it takes.”

Ridge’s eyebrows drastically dropped, “Don’t you fucking dare…” The growl in the back of his throat was something Xephos had almost forgotten. He tried to not laugh as the man tensed his hands into fists on the table.

Xephos breathed in the horribly filtered air with a smile, “I miss your possessive nature.” He titled his head to the side to express his jest, watching how Ridge let his anger fizzle out.

Disturbing the pair in their time together a high pitched bell rang throughout the populated room, quickly followed by a single commanding voice shouting socially heart wrenching demands. Their time was over, Xephos had to leave but Ridge had to stay. Glancing from the clock back to Ridge, the repeated motion did nothing to turn back the time, forcing both men to stand up from their spot.

“Well, thank you for coming.” Ridge’s voice became unusually monotone, permitting Xephos to slowly remember that in the public eye, he was just Ridge’s lawyer and Ridge, was just another client. “Don’t work yourself too hard, but I hope you can help me out.”

The raise of his hand nearly killed Xephos. Their years together meant nothing within the walls, nor did their moments side by side or the countless nights they spent in the dark with one another. It all had no value as they both found themselves tangled up in the system. Their laid out plans had been put to a halt, their reputation dissolved day by day and their vow of words was now considered arbitrary. Everything had changed and they feared if things could ever go back to the way they were before.

The hand Ridge held out was another nail in the coffin that Xephos found himself in. Unable to break out in fear of what may lie beyond, the chance for them both to be buried and forgotten or for the undertaker to ignore their pleas and take Ridge deep down into the ground, for a promise of twenty five years.

Xephos couldn’t take the hand and hold it; he couldn’t massage the fingers or kiss the knuckles. He could only shake, like all good boys do. He watched as the hand dropped, just as lifeless in letting go as his own, but somewhere in his mind he couldn’t let that be the only good bye.

Stretching his arms out in a soft and sociable manner he smiled, “Good luck in there. I hear it can be quite a tough time. Keep your head up and you’ll be back on the outside in no time, I promise.”

He watched Ridge visibly light up at the gesture, pacing himself rather than throwing his whole body into the hug. Xephos kept his arms high on Ridge’s back, constantly repeating in his head to keep the scene professional, no matter how hard his heart shook in his chest. He could feel Ridge breathe in against his shoulder, taking Xephos’ smell deep into his lungs.

Holding back any change in his expression, Xephos let the single pat on the back resound through the room, wishing he could pulled the man in closer to his body, but the simple friendly gesture had to remain that, only friendly.

Practically having to dislodge Ridge, Xephos held the man by his shoulders, both giving a nod, letting the distance grow between them again. He watched as the smile on Ridge’s lips endured even while he mouthed silent words of adoration as the hand of a guard escorted him away.

Xephos held up a hand in a solemn goodbye, noticing each look over his shoulder Ridge gave until he was out of sight. The pain in his chest grew as he could no longer see Ridge’s hair or tranquil eyes, sights he had taken for granted before, now tauntingly out of reach.

He could feel a surge shoot through him. A need to head to his car, find his rifle in the trunk and free Ridge no matter how bloody it got, but he knew he had to play by someone else’s rules this time. Xephos couldn’t run in with his confidence anymore, he had to plan with graceful skill and wait till his moment came. The statues of law were normally ignored by the two, but now he had a new game to play, his prize for winning, Ridge, and his prize for losing, time, and plenty of it.

He shook his thoughts away as he was ushered with the other visitors out of the room. He knew sleepless nights were in his near future if he wanted to succeed in helping set Ridge free. Long, lonely nights. He would get it done, but if not, he could already feel his blood boil as he cooked up a fall back plan. If he couldn’t get Ridge out, then he would put on a glorious show for permission to get in.


End file.
